For the federal government, cybersecurity is always top of mind, but the COVID-19 pandemic has further elevated the importance of securing federal networks. In recent months, more than 1 million federal employees and contractors were displaced from traditional, secure offices to their homes, vastly increasing the number of endpoint devices on networks and likely the prevalence of gray hairs among system administrators. The challenges posed are vast, but agency tech and security officials have adapted to today’s new normal quickly, with some agencies finding positives among remote work, including increased workforce diversity.
Meanwhile, the administration’s core cybersecurity initiatives continue. Agencies are beginning to ask software suppliers for software bills of material, promoting transparency to enable better protection. Lawmakers have ramped up a pressure campaign on agencies to implement recommendations made by the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, especially those that promote accountability among software developers. And the Defense Department, once considered an IT laggard, is leading progressive cybersecurity efforts in arenas like DevSecOps and zero trust architecture that could be a harbinger for how other agencies secure their networks in the future.
In this ebook, we’ll discuss these efforts and more, exploring how the government is securing networks now and its plans for the future.
Download this free ebook now.
source: NextGov
